Tuesday, June 19, 2012

The Science Mommy has been on a long hiatus! However, I am on my way back...I will be revamping the posts just a bit to include some of my parenting ideas along with the fun science projects. Please stay tuned...

Monday, August 1, 2011

Thank you to everyone who participated in the summer "Celebrate Chemistry" sponsored by Dow Chemical. Along with the investigations, I have been hosting a give-away and today is the day to announce the winners!!

Prize #1 - A Gift Card from Dow Chemical to purchase materials and directions for all the Celebrate Chemistry investigations. The prize goes to...JKM 135! Yay!

Tuesday, July 26, 2011

The Science Mommy has been invited by Dow Chemical to Celebrate Chemistrythis summer!

Here's
what's happening...The Science Mommy hosted a Chemistry Party and will
post the investigations over several weeks...this is the last week to enter!

We did two investigations to learn more about blood...Blood TypingAges: This is for the older Kid scientistsMaterials: There is a bit of prep for this investigation and you will need: Water, vinegar, whole milk, red food color, clear plastic cups and eye droppers or pipettes

Procedure: 1 - Set up the investigationIn a lab situation, blood can be typed by adding reagents to blood. Type A blood will react with Anti-A reagent but not Anti-B, Type B blood will react with Anti-B reagent but not Anti-A. Likewise Type AB will react with both and Type O will react with neither. This demonstration mimics the same effect without using real blood or requiring reagents. * Make a Simulated Blood solution: add red food coloring (and maybe a single drop of green) to 2 cups of milk until it looks a bit like blood* Put 1/2 cup Simulated Blood into 4 clear plastic cups. With a permanent pen, label each cup A, B, ABand O. The Science Mommy also created two Unknown Samples.* Prepare Simulated Reagents:The milk will react with the vinegar but not with the water. This investigation works better if you have several small dropper bottles on hand, but the Science Mommy only had the cups. For each blood type, you will need two Simulated Reagents. For Type A, the Anti-A reagent is vinegar and the Anti-B is water. For Type B, the Anti-B is vinegar and the Anti-A is water, both are vinegar for Type AB and both are water for Type O. The prep for this investigation can be confusing but if you label as you go, it works out great.
* Create a data table:

I just drew on an index card with permanent pen and placed it in a snack size baggie...the rows are for the blood types and the columns represent the reagents.

2 - Complete the Investigation

* Pass around Blood Type A, and each Science Kid puts a drop in both boxes of the data sheet. Then we passed around the Reagents for Type A. Science Kids put a couple drops of the correct reagent into each drop of blood and look at the results.

* The Science Kids talked about what they were noticing as they confirmed each of the known blood types. I explained that while this was a simulation, it's a very similar process if you have real blood.

* The final step is to test the Unknown Samples. Using their data from the known samples, the Science Kids were able to accurately determine the unknown blood types.

Behind the Science: All blood is made of the same basic elements and blood types are different depending on the presence or absence of certain antigens (substances or molecules) that trigger an immune response when they enter the body. "Self" antigens - those that match or are compatible with your body - are usually tolerated by the immune system. "Non-self" antigens are identified by the body as intruders and attacked by the immune system.

Monday, July 18, 2011

The Science Mommy has been invited by Dow Chemical to Celebrate Chemistrythis summer!

Here's
what's happening...The Science Mommy hosted a Chemistry Party and will
post the investigations over the next two weeks. Each week you'll
have a chance to win!

Ages: This investigation is best for the Big Kid Scientists

Materials:Bat, 2 meter sticks, baseball, golf ball, tape

There is a bit of prep for this investigation. Depending on the age of your Kid Scientists, you could have the prep work done ahead, or the Kids could do it themselves.

Procedure:

Mark off 4 cm sections of the bat as shown in the photo. The Science Mommy only had a kids bat available at home and the investigation worked well. We tried it later at a friends baseball practice, with a full sized bat and it worked even better.

Kid Scientists should hold the bat, straight down, in one hand. Hold the bat's handle loosely between the thumb and the first finger.

With the golf ball, tap the bat in each marked off section. Ask Kid Scientists what they felt when you tapped the bat. Was there a section in which the vibrations felt stronger, or a section in which they weren't as strong.

Ask other Kid Scientists in the group what they heard when the bat was tapped. Was there a section that was louder, or where they could hear more vibrations? Give each Kid Scientist a chance to hold the bat and feel the vibrations. This is a great opportunity to talk about how we make observations through feeling and hearing.

This step requires a little balance and practice. Tape the two meter sticks together in an "L" shape to form a ramp. Place the bat on a box or a stack of books and ask one Kid Scientist to hold it firmly. Lean the meter stick ramp against the bat and ask another Kid Scientist to hold the ramp.

Roll the golf ball down the ramp to the bat so that it bounces off the bat in Section A. Measure the height of the bounce based on the meter stick. Once the kids know what the procedure looks like and feels like, you can talk about conducting a controlled investigation. The Kid rolling the ball should start the ball in the same position each time. The ramp should stay at about the same angle to the bat. Kids could roll the ball three or four times in each section and average the data collected.

Connar collected the data while Emma rolled the ball down the ramp. Continue this process for each section of the bat. Where does the ball bounce the highest? The spot on the bat where the ball bounces the highest is the Sweet Spot!

What's Happening? The sweet spot we found is called "the node", where vibration waves from the impact of the bat and ball cancel each other out. At the node, more of the bat's energy goes to the ball because it's not used up in vibrations. When you hit a ball with the node of a bat, you don't feel any vibration in your hand and the ball goes further because it has more energy behind it.

Monday, July 11, 2011

The Science Mommy has been invited by Dow Chemical to Celebrate Chemistrythis summer!

Here's what's happening...The Science Mommy hosted a Chemistry Party and will post the investigations over the next three weeks. Each week you'll have a chance to win - click on the picture in the sidebar or read on for more details!

Baking Soda Volcanoes& Baking Soda Rockets

Ages: All ages of Kid Scientist will have fun with Baking Soda Volcanoes

1) Each Kid Scientist will need a large styrofoam cup. This part of the model represents the volcano. The Science Mommy cut a hole in the bottom of the cup to accommodate the film canister but Big Kids could do this themselves. Push the film canister into the hole in the bottom of the cup. The film canister represents a magma chamber in the volcano.

2) Put a teaspoon of baking soda into the film canister.

3) Each Kid Scientist also needs a small cup. We passed the materials for the "Lava Solution" around the circle and kids added them to their cups...1 ounce vinegar, 1 teaspoon dishsoap, red & yellow food color

4) Once everyone had their "Lava Solution" ready, we poured it into the the film canister...

...and watched the foamy, bubbly volcano reaction!

Since we were outside, and had all the materials at hand, the Science Kids at the party decided to explore Baking Soda Rockets...

* I modeled making a rocket for the Kid Scientists. This is an excellent investigation for Kids because the materials are simple and they can launch the rockets over and over. It takes some thoughtful experimentation to determine the best ratio of baking soda to vinegar and some practice with rocket launch.

1) Put baking soda into the lid of the film canister and vinegar into the canister itself

2) Attach the lid to the canister and smoothly place it upside down on the launch pad

3) Step back and watch the rocket

4) Think about what happened in your launch and try it again

Safety Considerations: * Only one person launching a rocket at a time * Make sure you step away from the launch, especially don't hold your head over the rocket * Once you have vinegar & baking soda all over your hands - don't touch your eyes or face

Assembling the cork and bike stem requires some adult help...the Science Boys asked their dad! 1) Cut the stem from the bike tire inner tube, leaving about a quarter size amount of rubber around the stem 2) Drill a hole through the length of the cork, just the size of the stem 3) Slide the stem through the cork and use hot glue or other adhesive to attach the rubber to the bottom of the cork

Head outside with the bottle, water, bicycle pump and cork

This is how your bottle rocket should set up prior to launch: Fill the bottle about 1/3 full of water and push the cork into the top, attach the bicycle pump to the stem and create a launch pad using a rock

Team work is important here as the bottle can be difficult to balance!

The rocket is launched by pumping on the tire pump!

Several variables can be explored with this rocket...How does the amount of water change the distance of the rocket? How does the angle of the launch pad change the height or direction of the rocket? How does the size of bottle change the launch of the rocket?

Safety Notes:

* The Science Boys were supervised while they were working and they asked lots of questions along the way. They made all the decisions, and you can tell they handled the photography! but they had help with the tools and hot glue

* The rocket does not travel very far or move very fast however this is a great teachable moment about where you should stand for a launch and how to manage the apparatus carefully

* While this sounds like a hassle to set up, once the cork component is ready to go the rocket is quite easy to launch. Since this requires only water and a bicycle pump, it really kept the boys busy all afternoon!

Monday, June 27, 2011

This is a repost of some fun ways to interest your Kid Scientists in observing the world around them...

Can you see the nest in the tree? Tucked into the fork of a branch right in the middle? I couldn’t see baby birds, but as I stood under the tree, I could hear them chirping. There is a great diversity of living things right in our neighborhoods for Kid Scientists to discover. Here are some ways to encourage Kid Scientist observations…

Digital Nature Walk – Hand your camera to your Kid Scientist during your walk. Challenge her to look for evidence of animals as well as the animals themselves. She might find a train of ants, a nest, tracks in the mud or lady bugs in the garden. Your Kid Scientist can collect her observations with pictures. If she’s really adventurous, she could create a Field Guide for your neighborhood.

Nature Walk Scavenger Hunt – For those Kid Scientists who need help slowing down and observing write a Scavenger hunt list on an index card to take on your walk (if your Kid Scientist can’t read you can read the list to him or enlist an older sibling to be his partner). Include things you know he’ll find easily as well as a couple real challenges…a robin, a wild flower, a spider web, a nest, animals tracks, ducks…

ABC Nature Walk – As you’re walking find things that begin with each letter in the alphabet…ants, bumble bee, columbine, daisy…this is way for your Kid Scientist to learn more specific names for things as well. If following the alphabet is too much of a challenge, you can turn it into ABC / I Spy, “I see something that starts with L” “Lady bug”

Nature Walk 1 2 3 – As you walk, ask your Kid Scientist to count what they’re seeing. “How many birds will you see before we get to the corner?” “How many daisies are on this plant?” “How many dragonflies do you see?”Amazing Things – Tell your Kid Scientists that at the end of your walk everyone will get to share an Amazing Thing they saw while walking home. Giving your Kid Scientist a chance to walk with wonder, looking at everything, encourages creativity and close observation. Once you’re home, it’s interesting to hear what they thought was amazing.

Sounds of Nature – Have your Kid Scientists sit or lay down with their eyes closed for one minute – just listening. At the end of the minute, ask them to share what they heard. If bird sounds are clear, ask Kid Scientists if they can figure out how many birds are making the sounds.The Science Mommy would love to hear about your Neighborhood Nature Walk

I'm Jennifer Chase and I'm the Science Mommy! I have been a mom for thirteen years and a science teacher for sixteen years. Kids are natural scientists...they just need a little direction and they love to explore the world around them. The Science Mommy is all about bringing safe, fun and usually messy science to kids. Explore the site and find a new experience to share with your kids!